Self-winding watch movement



NOV. 26, 1968 Q DELESSERT ETAL 3,412,550

SELF-WIND ING WATCH MOVEMENT Filed May 26, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet l (Qa-afan s/ essfer ER/c :lacca/9D FEL/f5 LANG @y kr r- 5M Nov. 26, 1968 G. DELEssi-:RT ETAL 3,412,550

SELF-WIND ING WATCH MOVEMENT 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 26, 1966 Gevaar-s Delis-.95,91- ER/c z/Aecneb FEL/Pe LANG By f 0W,

Nov. 26, 1968 Filed May 26, 1966 G. DELESSERT ETAL SELF- WIND I NG WATCH MOVEMENT 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 United States Patent O 3,412,550 SELF-WINDING WATCH MOVEMENT Georges Delessert, Eric Jaccard, and Felipe Lang, Ge-

neva, Switzerland, assignors to Patek, Philippe SA, a corporation of Switzerland Filed May 26, 1966, Ser. No. 553,211 Claims priority, application Switzerland, June 15, 1965, 8,317/65 z Claims. (C1. srs-sz) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A self-winding Watch movement has a winding mass in the form of an annular segment that swings on ball bearings about its center of curvature. The mass and its associated gearing are disposed peripherally of the movement and between the planes that bound the front and rear faces of the movement. A winding stem protrudes from the rear of the movement and has its axis perpendicular to the plane of the movement and disposed between the path of movement of the mass and the center of curvature of the mass.

In the automatic watch movements having an inertia winding, the eccentric mass or rotor the center of gravity of which is diiferent from its center of rotation causes a winding of the movement by tensioning the main spring through the intermediary of an adequate gearing. The necessary energy for that tensioning is furnished by the movements of the wearer of the watch. The accelerations of these movements, or that of gravity in the case of modiication of position, are transformed into energy due to the inertia of the mass and the non-coincidence of its center of rotation and of its center of gravity.

Different solutions have been proposed to dispose the automatic winding mass or the rotor with respect to the movement itself. FIGURES 1 to 4 show the known dispositions in which the winding mass undergoes an angular displacement which is less than 360. In these embodiments the winding mass can be located at least partly in the thickness of the movement whereas the winding stem protrudes radially from the movement in the portion of the sector which is not traversed by this mass.

FIGURES 5 and 6 show an embodiment in which the winding mass is able to make a complete revolution which permits a better utilization of the available energy resulting from the shocks or movements of the user. In this solution it is to be noted that the winding stern has to be located outside of the path of travel of the mass, so that this latter has to be spaced axially with respect to the movement, which increases its height.

The present invention has for its object to provide a watch movement with self winding having a little height but making use of a winding mass which can make a complete revolution. This movement distinguishes itself by the fact that it comprises a winding mass which is pivoted around the movement, entirely located within the height of said movement, and which is able to effect angular displacements greater than 360 as well as a time setting and/or manual winding device the actuating member of which protrudes from one of the frontal faces of the movement.

The attached drawing shows schematically and by way of example one embodiment of the movement according to the invention as well as different existing realizations.

FIGURES 1 to 6 show very schematically the dispositions of the automatic winding masses relative to the winding stem of different known embodiments.

ICC

FIGURES 7 and 8 show the disposition of the manual winding and time setting device as well as the automatic winding mass with respect to the movement of the present invention.

FIGURE 9 is a plan view from above of the movement according to the invention.

FIGURE l0 is a cross section along line AA of FIGURE 9.

FIGURE 11 is a cross section along line B-B of FIGURE 9.

The self winding watch movement shown in detail in FIGURES 9 to 11 of the drawing comprises a plate 1 and bridges 2, 3, and 4. The gearings of the movement are pivoted in a conventional manner between this plate and these bridges. The mechanism of this watch movement is generally well known so that it will not be described in detail here, except for the self winding gearing as well as the time setting and manual Winding -device which are novel.

The self-winding device comprises an automatic winding gearing as well as a mass or self winding rotor 5. This mass 5 has an annular shape and surrounds partially the movement on the plate to which it is pivoted by means of a ball-bearing. In the embodiment shown this mass or rotor 5 is pivoted on the watch movement by means of a ball-bearing of the type described in the Swiss Patent No. 382,658. This ball-bearing comprises a support 6 rigidly xed Ion the plate 1 and the lower face of which is located approximately in the same plane as the lower face of this plate 1. This support 6 has thus an annular shape and comprises an extension 7 carrying on its internal face two races 8, 9 and on its external face a cylindrical portion 10 intended to receive the intermediate portion of the casing of the watch. The race 8 is directly machined on said support 6 whereas, for obvious assembling reasons, the race 9 is machined on a ring |11 which is fixed in any adequate known way on the said support 6 in the immediate vicinity of the upper extremity of the extension 7.

The two other races 12, 13 of this bearing are carried by rings 14, 15 respectively of which ring 14 is fast with the other ring 15 whereas this latter is rigidily fixed on the mass or rotor 5. Therefore this ring 15 comprises an upper part in which an annular groove 16 is provided which is intended to receive a corresponding annular projection 16a protruding from the lower face of the rotor `5. This mass 5 and this ring 15 are cemented together. This type of iixation of the mass 5 on the ring 15 is preferred since it requires only easy machinings and only continuous machinings so that these parts do not present any particular points of stress concentration such as borings, threadings and so on, which cause undue deformations.

The balls 17 are disposed between these four races 8, 9, 12 and 13 and are in simultaneous contact with all of them. A spacing cage 18 of these balls is also provided, constituted `by an annular portion provided with at least three ribs and comprising housings for the balls 17. The diameter of these housings, regularly spaced along this center portion, is greater than the greatest dimension of the cross section of this center portion so that passages are provided between the said ribs in order that a ball placed in such a housing may enter in contact with the four races 8, 9, 12, 13. This spacing cage 18 rests only on the balls 17 so that friction is maintained as low as possible to obtain the greatest freedom of movement of the winding mass 5.

The angular extent of the mass 5 is about 180 whereas the rings 14 and 15 are closed on themselves. The shape of the mass 5, seen in a transverse cross section, is such that it fills approximately the space located above the roller bearing and around the movement. In this way this mass 5 as well as its pivoting device are entirely located in an annular space located around the movement but having the same height as this movement.

The ring has internal teeth meshing with the teeth of a first gear 19 of the self winding gearing. This first gear is constituted by a direction inversion device enabling to drive a second gear in rotation always in the same direction whatever the direction of rotation of the mass 5 is. This second gear 20 drives a demultiplication gearing comprising a third 21, a fourth 22, a fifth 23 and a sixth gear 24. This sixth gear 24 is in mesh with the ratchetwheel 25 fast on the axis 26 of a barrel 27.

The third gear 21 is subjected to the action of a nonreturn pawl 28, pivotally mounted and subjected to the resilient action of a spring blade 28a, tending to locate the extremity of this pawl 28 in the teeth of the wheel of this third gear. This non-return pawl 28 opposses rotation of the third gear 21 corresponding to the unwinding of the main spring.

The fourth gear 22 comprises a pinion meshing with the third gear 21 as well as a wheel meshing with the fifth gear 23. This fourth gear 22 is mounted on a rocker pivoted on an intermediate bridge and constitutes a oneway coupling through dynamic effect. This one-way coupling is such that it permits the winding-up of the main spring through the self winding mass but causes the disengaging of the gears 22 and 23 during manual winding.

The barrel 27 comprises a toothed crown 27a driving in a known manner a motor gearing as well as a regulating device of known type which will not be described here.

It is to be noted that the mass or rotor 5 may freely rotate around the movement of which it slightly increases the diameter but not the height. To obtain this disposition, it has been necessary to provide a time setting and manual winding device having particular features, the stem of which is not located on the path of displacement of the mass 5.

This time setting and manual winding device comprises a stem 29 pivoting and sliding in a bore provided in the bridge 2 of the movement. This stem 29 extends thus perpendicular to the plane of the movement and not parallel as is generally the case. The outside extremity of this stem 29 protrudes from the rear face of the movement and is provided with a nut or actuating member 30.

The other extremity of this stem 29 is guided in a bearing provided in the plate 1 of the movement. This stem 29 can occupy two distinct axial positions, the one corresponding to time setting and the other corresponding to manual winding. These two axial positions are determined by a biconical groove 31 provided in the stem and cooperating with a hairpin spring 32 fixed under the 4bridge 2. This stem 29 is angularly fast on a toothed wheel 33 which meshes with an intermediate gearing 34 when the stem 29 is in manual time setting position, that is to say in its axial position for which it protrudes the most from the movement. This intermediate gearing 34 drives in a known manner, during its rotation, the hands of the movement to enable its time setting.

When the stem 29 is in position for which it is driven with the movement, that is, in manual winding position, the wheel 33 disengages the intermediate gearing 34, but it meshes with a wheel 35 itself permanently in mesh with an intermediate gearing 36 in gearing connection with the ratchet wheel 25 of the barrel 27. This wheel 35 is connected to the wheel 33, that is to the stem 29, through the intermediary of a one-way coupling, for example with the aid of Breguet teeth, enabling the driving in rotation of the said wheel 35 through the actuating member 30 only in the direction corresponding to the winding-up of the main spring.

The operation of the self-winding device as well as of the time setting and manual winding device will not be described here, since they are well known.

However, it is important to note, that the particular relative dispoistion of these two devices makes possible an automatic movement having little thickness and simultaneously keeping parts of the movement at normal dimensions which is necessary to obtain strength.

The described disposition makes possible self-winding movement having a height corresponding to the thin movements now existing by using normal movements the height of which has not been reduced by fabrication and construction tricks which may lead to working difiiculties.

It is to be further noted that the actuating member of the time setting and/or manual winding device can have any desired shape, for example very fiat in order not to increase the thickness of the watch.

However in another embodiment which is a preferred one, this actuating member presents a frusto conical shape or conical shape the summit of which is located at the free end of this actuating device. This shape is particularly favourable to the indentation by this actuating device of the skin of the arm of the user so that the watch seems to have the width of its casing only, the actuating member or winding member protruding from it being hidden. This feature tends also to give a very thin appearance to the described movement.

It is to be noted that the stem of the manual winding device is always disposed in such a manner that its axis is perpendicular or approximately perpendicular at least to the plane of the movement. This stem can however, according to variants of execution, protrude from the movement and hence from the watch, always from one of its frontal faces, either from the face or from the back of the watch.

We claim:

1. A self-winding watch movement comprising a winding mass in the form of an annular segment, means mounting said segment for swinging movement about the center of curvature of said segment freely about the entire periphery of said movement, said winding mass and said mounting means having a total height less than the height of said movement and being disposed between planes that bound the front and rear faces of said movement, a rotatable stem extending from the rear face of said movement perpendicular to said rear face, the axis of said stem being disposed inside the path of movement of said annular segment but spaced from said center of curvature, and meansinterconnecting said stem with said movement selectively to wind said movement or to set the time indicated by said movement.

2. A self-winding watch movement as claimed in claim 1, said stem having two axially displaced positions in one of which said stem sets the time indicated by the watch and in the other of which the stem winds the watch.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 972,399 l/1951 France. 988,517 8/1951 France.

51,829 6/ 1910 Switzerland. 139,870 8/ 1930 Switzerland. 167,561 2/ 1934 Switzerland. 322,325 6/ 1957 Switzerland. 332,551 9/1958 Switzerland. 333,587 10/1958 Switzerland.

RICHARD B. WILKINSON, Primary Examiner.

G. H. MILLER, JR., Assistant Examiner. 

